Oakley City Staff has asked for ministerial approval of all trash rate increases for Oakley residents, including the approval of the refuse company that Oakley contracts with to remove discards from the community. The acceptance of the request means that the City Manager could approve refuse collection fees without City Council approval and add them to a Master Fee Schedule for Oakley. The request was made in response to an agenda item on this Tuesday’s agenda to allow Mount Diablo Resource Recovery (MDRR) a 23%+ fee increase over five years.
The request has caught the attention of those in City Hall. Fortunately, the Council has a say regarding the approval of the request. As to the fee request, I will have to review the item further and listen to the presentation before making a decision as to the fee increase. However, I will unequivocally vote no if the provision that allows the City Manager to approve rate increases without Council approval remains on motion to approve fee increases. Below is a URL to the Oakley staff report. The ministerial approval section is on the last page, last paragraph. The section is highlighted in blue.
https://fullerforoakley.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/mdrr-03-22.pdf
George Fuller, MPA, MA
City Councilmember, City of Oakley, CA
